Managing tomato pests using Lantana camara and papaya leaves

Pages

Today I bring to you a technology from a farmer using Lanatan camara and Pawpaw leaves to control tomato pests. Please enjoy the reading and share any feedback.

Tomato is one of the crops that are profitable both on large and small scale. The crop however has a wide range of pest and diseases to the level that growing it without measure to control them is almost impossible in most places. Most farmers therefore indiscriminately apply large amounts of synthetic chemicals to control them. This poses a risk to the consumers and the environment on top of increasing production costs. Eresi, a farmer from Masindi now uses Latana camara and pawpaw leaves to control pests in tomato.

The process

She grinds 1kg of fresh lantana camara and 1kg of fresh pawpaw leaves. She then dissolves a piece of washing soap equal to the size of a match box in four litres of water and adds this soapy water to the pounded leaves. After this, she filters the mixture through a cloth and sprays it on the crop one a week.

Please kindly share with us your experience and/or comments about this technology

Comments

It's great to share the idea. In kenya, tomatoes are a green house plant to realise maximum profit.
However the idea of lantana leaves is great and would encourage most famers to try it.
Am requesting for anybody with knowledge on making paste from tomatoes to share with me as value addition concept.
Am in an area that produces tomatoes and many get spoilt before reaching the market.
Let me know the type of machine, cost and who would want to partner with me.
Thanks
Yosi Hannington Rabbit farmer.

At a community farm I was working on, we brought in the lantana camara and it achieved certain pest control behaviour. Yet, precisely with the amount of snails and slugs as well as most pests that we drove away, using Lantana camara is a challenge at times which we can be aware of. On one hand, lantana camara helps invite butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds if one is growing a flower garden, on the other hand it does behave like a weed. My cat does not like it and from my studies they are not good with livestock due to their toxicity (which explains their role in pest control). Therefore, please use with discretion. Today two years down the road, lantana camara generally serves an ornamental purpose i.e. it stays around because it looks nice, that is all.

Great news. Information provided is good and I will try them in my own locality. My work has been focused on using papaya, neem and saim weed leaves as mulch to suppressed aphids and foliage beetles in cowpea. Results indicated that all three mulch materials have antifeedant and repellant properties against both pests. I intend to look at the efficacy of these materials when applied in combination or individually.

Thanks and will provide more information based on my research results.

Hi all. Am writing to look for partners in processing my Banana produce. I have over 500 Tissue Culture Banana plants now fruiting and the market has been elusive. I am looking for support to start making flour, crisps, Wine and jam and make animal feed from the wastes. Also, i need tecnical support on mail or in person. I also want to request for Research centres to assist with the latest cultivars that are doing well. Please kindly assist. Yosi hanningto +254722657460.